Walk-in tubs
We have walk-in baths in our name, and we still recommend showers more often
A walk-in tub solves one problem better than anything else: a warm full-body soak for someone who can no longer climb over a rim. It is the wrong answer for almost everything else, and here is the arithmetic.
- Door sill
- 3 to 7 in
- Seat height
- 17 in
- Measured drain
- 92 sec
- Fill capacity
- 40 to 70 gal
Six parts, and the number on each
What a walk-in tub is made of, and which specification line actually changes your daily experience of it.
- 3 to 7 in
Inward-swing door
A 3 to 7 in moulded sill with a compression gasket. Inward swing means water pressure seals it, and it cannot be opened while the tub is full.
- 17 in
Moulded seat
Contoured, with a backrest angle that lets you sit upright rather than slumped. Seat height is what makes standing up afterwards possible.
- 92 sec
Fast-drain valves
A pair of 2 in valves instead of a single 1.5 in. This is the single biggest comfort difference between tubs, and it is the spec sheet line most people never read.
- 40 to 70 gal
Fill capacity
Forty to seventy gallons, which is where the water-heater problem comes from. We check heater capacity before we will order a tub.
- 120 F cap
Thermostatic fill
ASSE 1016 rated, with the stop set at the valve. A walk-in tub fills against skin, so overshoot is not acceptable.
- Own circuit
Hydro and air options
Air jets are gentler on sensitive skin; water jets give deeper muscle relief. Both add a blower or pump that needs its own GFCI circuit.
Five questions, then the full comparison
Nothing is submitted. The leaning changes as you answer, and every option explains why it pulls the way it does.
The two products, side by side
| Factor | Walk-in tub | Barrier-free shower | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|
| Step-over height at the entry | 3 to 7 in over the inward-swing door sill | 0 in, flush with the bathroom floor | Shower |
| Time from entry to warm water | 4 to 8 minutes of fill while you sit in the empty tub | Immediate, and the valve can be reached from outside the spray | Shower |
| Time before you can open the door | 80 to 140 seconds with a fast-drain pair of 2 in valves | None | Shower |
| Hot water demand in one session | 40 to 70 gallons. A 40 gallon heater will not fill one | 12 to 20 gallons at a 1.75 gpm head over 8 minutes | Shower |
| Full-body soak for arthritis or fibromyalgia | 17 in seat, water to shoulder height, optional air or hydro jets | Not possible | Tub |
| Use by a wheelchair user without standing | Requires a standing pivot over the sill | Roll-in with a shower chair or a fixed folding seat | Shower |
| Caregiver assisting from outside | Hard. The tub wall keeps a helper at arm's length | Easy. A 36 in curbless opening lets a helper step in dry-shod | Shower |
| Fits an existing 60 x 32 in alcove with no wall moved | Yes, direct replacement in most 1970s to 1990s Sarasota alcoves | Yes, but needs the floor recess in section 2 | Even |
| Resale to a buyer who is not aging in place | Narrow appeal. Many buyers plan to remove it | Broad appeal. Curbless reads as a design choice, not a medical one | Shower |
| Typical installed range in our market (sample) | $9,800 to $17,500 | $12,400 to $24,000 | Tub |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
The water heater problem
The most common thing missing from a competitor's walk-in tub quote.
A walk-in tub holds 40 to 70 gallons. A 40 gallon tank heater delivers roughly 28 to 30 gallons of genuinely hot water before cold makeup water dilutes the tank to lukewarm. The arithmetic does not work, and no amount of insulation or heated seating fixes it.
Malik checks your heater at the assessment, before anything is ordered. If it needs to go from 40 to 80 gallons, that is in the quote as a line with a price on it. We have lost sales to cheaper quotes that left it out, and then been called back three weeks later by the same household.
Have your heater checked- 40 gallon tank
- 28 to 30 gal usable. Not enough.
- 50 gallon tank
- 35 to 38 gal usable. Enough for most tubs.
- 80 gallon tank
- 56 to 60 gal usable. Comfortable for any model.
- Tankless
- Confirm 5 gpm at a 60 degree rise before ordering.
- Sample upgrade cost
- $1,400 to $2,900 installed
What people ask about walk-in tubs
The six we answer weekly
Including the one nobody in the industry likes being asked: would you talk me out of it?
Ask a person instead(941) 555-0213All questions and answersYes. The door has to be closed and sealed before the water goes in, so you are seated in an empty tub for four to eight minutes while it fills, and seated again for eighty to a hundred and forty seconds while it drains. Every walk-in tub works this way. Heated seats and a fast-fill faucet make it more comfortable but they do not remove the wait.
A 40 gallon tank will not. It delivers roughly 28 to 30 gallons of genuinely hot water before makeup water dilutes it, and a walk-in tub holds 40 to 70. We check your heater at the assessment and quote the upgrade to 50 to 80 gallons, or a tankless unit confirmed at 5 gpm over a 60 degree rise, before the tub is ordered. It is typically $1,400 to $2,900 and it belongs in the number.
The drain is gravity fed, so it empties whether or not there is power. Jets and the blower stop, and the thermostatic valve keeps working because it is mechanical. We fit a door that can be opened manually once the water is below the sill.
Usually yes. Most models are built for the 60 x 32 in alcove that almost every Sarasota home built between 1972 and 1998 already has. The drain moves and the valve is replaced, so it is still a permitted plumbing job.
The tub itself is acrylic and wipes down like any other. The parts that need attention are the door gasket, which wants a wipe after every use to stop soap film building on the seal, and the jets if you fit them, which need a monthly flush cycle. We show you both at handover.
Often, yes, and we say so on the home page too. Roughly seven households in ten who call us are better served by a barrier-free shower. The tub wins when a warm full-body soak genuinely relieves pain, when the person can reliably lift a foot four inches, and when bathing is independent. The decision aid above walks the same logic we use on the phone.
The last thing on this page
Ninety minutes, at your house, for nothing
Joaquin measures the room against every clearance, maps the studs so we know where blocking can go, and leaves a written report. If the honest answer is that your bathroom cannot do what you need, he will say so and the report is still yours.
- Call
- (941) 555-0213
- Office hours
- Monday to Friday: 7:30 am to 5:30 pmSaturday: 9:00 am to 2:00 pmSunday: Closed, messages answered Monday
- Workshop
- 2140 Cattlemen Road, Suite 4, Sarasota, FL 34232
We do bathrooms only. If you need a kitchen, an addition or whole-home work we will give you two names of people who do it properly.